Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday

A Christian view of the day is quite simple.

We are made from dust and to dust we return is something that has been at the heart of human thought for a lot longer than the Christian faith has existed. It was part of the idea at the root of the Jewish faith from which Christ, the Messiah emerged and is in the Islamic teachings too. But it goes further back than that and is almost universal, existing in religions that have no direct or rational connection with those mentioned.

Why?

Perhaps it is about how we see ourselves as human beings? As creatures who are quite unique on this world of ours it is difficult to imagine that it is not something that might be, as our scientific community would argue, is hardwired in us. A logical conclusion when we examine the whole cosmology of life itself. We are all, after all, built from the same building blocks as the rest of the universe. We are human, and we are part of the whole universe. Part of what the universe is made of. If we contemplate this we are led to a simple answer – life itself is made up of what the whole universe is made up of.

The simple beauty of this is at once both mundane and overwhelming.

Our uniqueness is set within the pattern of the universe itself.

Acceptance of this is what we reach when we examine the things we have learnt. Every new idea, concept, fact and system we discern lead us to a glorious pattern that expands as we learn more. From the sub-atomic to the grand scale of things we find that the universe is more complex, and more elegant than we might have imagined.

And as people with faith this does not challenge what we believe. Instead we glory in this knowledge and wish to seek more.

Ash Wednesday is a celebration of what we are, what we can be and what we should seek. From dust we came and to dust we go is not a negative message. It is a celebration of our connection with all creation. We are not separated from it but part of it and we seek to be more closely connected with it. The continuity of the universe, its processes and its path are good.

What ever we eventually find will not be the end of things.

Christ did not tell us when the end would be. In fact he warned us that we would not know the end. Not because we are restricted by our knowledge but because who we are, what we are, is part of the pattern he showed us.

So, lets not be negative on this special day. Let us look towards our future. Let us celebrate creation and diversity. Let us open our hearts to all the new possibilities we reveal and find ways of answering them positively. Nothing stops as we grow. All that we do needs to have the faith we realise. Creation is good and we need to act positively in our world.

The message of love does not restrict us but it does guide us. Let that guidance of love rule our path. Do not let selfishness, greed and hate dominate as we live our lives.

From dust we came, to dust we go but in between those points we have a role to play